Snacks, not kickbacks says beleaguered Senator Jinggoy Estrada

Snacks not kickbacks are what Ruby Tuason always give to senator Jinggoy estrada whenever they see each other. What Jinggoy failed to say is if those snacks contain stacks of cash.

Or, if those "snacks" actually meant "cash" since "cash" means "dough" in some languages.

Senator Teofisto Guingona reportedly scored a 3-point shot with Tuason's testimony yesterday, causing guffaws from the octogenarian senator juan ponce enrile who probably thought that the testimony hit him when in fact, that testimony practically cleared Enrile from the hot spot not if you equate Gigi Reyes with Enrile? Tuason says it was Gigi who gets the kickbacks from her personally, not the savvy corporate lawyer turned legislator.

Vice president Binay meanwhile said, Tuason's alleged testimony was a "dud", as if he's anticipating a "war". Well, Guingona thinks this whole thing is just a basketball game, I just don't know why Binay thinks this is a war.

While I'm not surprised at all, why Jinggoy thinks this is all a snack.

I think the only one not smiling here is Janet Lim-Napoles.

Senator Antonio Trillanes as "walkout kid"

Senator Antonio Trillanes IV will perennially be known as the "walkout kid". In all his political life, Trillanes walked out four times. 

The first one, when, after threatening to blow themselves up in a posh residence up Ayala, Trillanes IV led his rag-tag team out of there and into the arms of his supposed enemies--the generals of former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. That was his first walk-out, and the public loved it, because everyone was up in arms against the Arroyo regime.

The second walkout was when he again led a bunch of Magdalos out of a Makati courtroom. He then, again, went to a 5-star hotel and holed himself up together with members of the working press and an ageing former Vice President. The scene would have led to a bigger mass action had Trillanes waited for several days more before, he, again, walked out of that hotel and into the arms of an ex SAF NCRPO chief. Again, that "historic" walk-out earned him the public's approbation (The public just loves walkouts). That "walkout" was his third.

Then, this one.

The first three were expressions of disgusts against a discredited regime. This next one, however, is different. Instead of earning the people's nod, this latest walkout exposed who Trillanes really is---to paraphrase JPE, a "coward".

I heard this tag from a friend way back in 2003, when Trillanes IV and his group posturing as "rebels", executed what is now known as "Oakwood mutiny". This guy, who happens to be one of the most idealistic leaders in the armed forces in his time, told me straight forward never to believe in this group because they are all "cowards".

For me, it was a tactical retreat and surely it was. Not so, said my friend. " Had it been our group, we would have holed it up there for a couple of days more. This group does not have the balls", I remember my friend telling me about these "Magdalos". Probably my friend knew more than what I know at that time. 

History has been kind to Trillanes inspite of the numerous political debacles in his career. Like Honasan, Trillanes postured himself as a hero, only to be unmasked as a "fraud", according to Senator Juan Ponce Enrile.

In their duel yesterday before millions of Filipino eyes, the public caught Trillanes red in the face as if he's hiding something. It was the first time I saw Trillanes showing some fear. Why was he afraid of JPE? What is he afraid of?

Is he afraid of what he really did in China? Foreign affairs secretary Albert del Rosario said Trillanes "muddled the issue up" instead of doing good. 

Meanwhile, JPE practically accused Trillanes of being a "traitor", basing his observations on the notes of Philippine ambassador Sonia Brady.

Trillanes met Chinese officials sixteen times. We don't exactly know what he did, but basing on the hints that Enrile gave, Trillanes reportedly gave away the Scarborough shoal.

Trillanes tried to parry the blows of the sharp Senate president, but Enrile's verbal barbs were sharper than a two-edge sword. 

What qualified Trillanes to negotiate for and on behalf of the Philippine government? What are his interests? Why is he so interested in repairing China-RP relations?

Trillanes accused Enrile of being a "war freak", forgetting that in the past, he vowed to "bomb" the Arroyo regime to smithereens.

Really now, I would accept being accused of being a "war freak" instead of being accused of cowardice and of "selling out the sovereignty" of the Philippines.

Was it true that Trillanes really "walked out" of his "nationalist" shell and donned a Mao cap instead? 

That's the fourth walk-out.

Automated failure? ---Joey de Venecia III

Is the automation plan designed to fail? It seems like it, says IT businessman Joey de Venecia III. For Joey, who exposed the rotten ZTE-NBN deal, the Commission on Elections must resolve some "very serious issues" before proceeding with full automation for the May 2010 polls.

Joey pointed some very serious issues relating to full automation, one of which is the time it takes a voter to cast his ballot. If we automate fully, that would take a great amount of time (8 minutes per voter) than we normally do in previous elections.

Joey de Venecia III says COMELEC must conduct a time and motion study.

“The Comelec should conduct a time and motion study first before taking such a gung ho attitude to automation,” he said. “I’ve conducted informal studies on this matter alone and they indicate that it may take up to ten times longer for every voter to complete the voting process.”

Since the number of voting precincts will be reduced, there will be more voters massing in them next year, he said.From more than 200,000 voting precincts in the past – usually the nation’s public schools – the number will be reduced to 80,000. This means that the number per precinct will increase threefold.

Then there is the new ballot. De Venecia said that the Comelec’s newly-designed ballot is double sided and will have some 300 names of candidates to choose from unlike in the past wherein the voter only had to fill in the names of his choice of president, vice president and 12 senators.“The time it will take to fill in the ballot will likewise increase substantially,” according to de Venecia.“If it took a minute to complete one’s ballot before, it will now take three or even four minutes, given the new form that the electorate is not used to.”

Under an informal time and motion study conducted by de Venecia, the typical voter will have to look for his new precinct, join a much longer queue, then fill in a type of ballot that he has never seen before.“Everything points to a chaotic May 2010 election,” said the son and namesake of former Speaker Jose de Venecia.

“I don’t want to seem like some kind of prophet of doom, but the chaotic voting day scenario could lead to a failure of elections. What this can lead to is anybody’s guess.”

De Venecia is pushing for full automation to be applied only in the National Capital Region. He said if voting goes smoothly enough in Metro Manila, then full nationwide automation can be applied in the barangay elections in the latter part of 2010.

“There are so many things that can go wrong, not just the extra long hours it will take for every voter to finally cast his ballot,” said de Venecia.The voting machines need to be manned by 47,000 trained technicians, he said.

Smartmatic, the foreign company which won the bid to automate the elections, “is an IT firm and not a recruitment agency,” he said. “Where will they find 47,000 qualified technicians?”De Venecia also said he was concerned that the results would be forwarded to the Comelec headquarters in Manila electronically, meaning through Smart, Globe and possibly Sun, the country’s three major telcos.

In far-flung areas, or in areas where the three companies have insufficient signals, the results would have to be forwarded through satellite bounce. Systems loss could alter the results of the presidential elections in a tight race.

The same would be true for the senators fighting it out for the ninth to 12th slots.“A two percent systems loss for the country’s 40 million voters translates to 800,000 votes not being properly counted,” said de Venecia.At worst, chaos on election day could be used as an excuse by the Arroyo administration to declare emergency rule, even martial law, warned de Venecia.

Meanwhile, a failure of elections in May 2010 would result to a power vacuum, says Senate president Juan Ponce Enrile in the regular Kapihan sa Manila hotel yesterday. I was there when Enrile said that a possible failure declaration could result from a faulty automation plan.

Pfizer tries yet fails to wriggle out of "bribery" scam

Pfizer Philippines today denied that it tried to bribe government and considered it a "direct affront" to its corporate reputation when Senator Juan Ponce-Enrile described their offer as a "bribe."

( By the way, read The Huff on history of Pfizer's alleged moves to "bully" the Philippine government to protect its anti-hyperintensive drug Norvasc from price ceilings. Read this link. Pfizer pala sued government in 2006 and even used its ties with the US State department to pressure our government to succumb to its whims)

Pfizer explained that the alleged offer to provide 5 million Sulit Patient Care discount cards was actually a plan to partner up with the Department of Health. Pfizer says its sulit cards are being used by 1.8 "indigent" patients throughout the Philippines. Pfizer just thought it wise to expand the program to include an additional 5 million people. The offer daw was made last May, weeks before the release of the list of drugs with maximum retail price ceilings.

Crap. Bull. Pfizer is definitely not telling us the truth.

Look, Pfizer and their PR handlers probably surmised that we're all suckers. In fact, their statement opened a Pandora's box of questions. Tangekngek ang mga PR nitong Pfizer!

First, if Pfizer was really telling the truth that the offer was "genuinely for indigent patients", then, why did they not offer it to the Department of Health at the time they conceptualize it? Why did Pfizer entered into agreements first with GSIS and Philhealth before going to DOH? What's so special with employees of GSIS and of PhilHealth?

Second, if Pfizer really was on this "with clean hands and with clean intentions," then, why was the offer made months before it was launched? The timing is very suspicious to say the least.

Third, if their sulit card program is really "above-board", then why was it rejected outright by Health secretary Francisco Duque Jr.? Some say, Duque favors Wyeth kasi. But, I don't think that's right. Duque probably thought it wise not to succumb to the tempting P100 M. Good for Duque.

Pfizer will find it very, very hard to wiggle themselves out of this mess. One principle in effective crisis management is---admit the truth. Don't lie. Try to be very transparent. In this case, palpak na agad ang Pfizer.

And this is a challenge to Senators Mar Roxas and Juan Ponce-Enrile and even to Mrs. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo----HUWAG PALAMPASIN ANG GINAWANG ITO NG PFIZER PATI NG MGA PHARMA COMPANIES. I ADMIRE YOU GENTLEMEN. DON'T LET THE PUBLIC DOWN. IF THESE PHARMA COMPANIES ARE NOT PUNISHED DESPITE ENRILE'S ASSERTION THAT THEY TRIED TO BRIBE GOVERNMENT, THEN, I'M SORRY BUT I HAVE TO WRITE THE TRUTH. DO NOT COMPROMISE YOUR PRINCIPLES, HONORABLE SENATORS.

I CHALLENGE MRS. ARROYO TO ORDER THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE TO FILE ATTEMPTED BRIBERY CASE AGAINST PFIZER AND OTHER PHARMA EXECUTIVES WHO WERE THERE LAST JULY 8, 2009. IF ARROYO IS REALLY HONEST IN HER ANTI-GRAFT CAMPAIGN, START WITH PFIZER.

PETER FAVILA SHOULD ALSO COME CLEAN AND REVOKE THE LICENSES AND REGISTRATION OF THESE PHARMA FIRMS, PARTICULARLY PFIZER. IF THEY DO THESE, I WILL STOP CRITICIZING THIS REGIME.

O, KAYA MO BA HA GLORIA?

Legacy: How do you want to be remembered?

In the not too distant future, expect to see some of those prominent names in the gallery of Congress in the obituary page of your favorite newspaper. Most of Philippine democracy's veteran fighters are ageing. Some have faded into oblivion, while others continue to serve us, albeit, without us really appreciating their work. Others, well, they all went away, either due to sickness (most Senators die of cancer) or old age.

Senate president Juan Ponce-Enrile is now 85 years old. Senator Joker Arroyo turned 82 last January 5. While last termer Senator Aquilino Pimentel is turning 76 by December.

Former president Fidel Valdes Ramos just turned 82, a tad younger than Enrile last March 18. These men figured prominently in our history for the last twenty years, all ran and won the confidence of the Filipino People after EDSA Uno.

Enrile and Ramos both launched the coup that changed Filipino history. Arroyo and Pimentel served under the revolutionary government after sacrificing their very futures just to uphold democracy. Most of their contemporaries have either faded to retirement (former Vice President Teofisto Guingona is one) while others, well, already died.

All of them are heroes. They continually hold the trust and confidence of the people simply because of their sterling record of public service. They all mouth the same desire for change. Yet, in all of those twenty years after EDSA uno, nothing has ever changed.

I wonder if these people ever think of going to a beach or a mountain and contemplate on what people would say as eulogies.

Will Enrile be remembered for his role as the defense secretary who defected to the other side at the last minute or will he be remembered for his staunch campaign against telecommunications companies?

How about Joker? Will people remember him as that fiery human rights lawyer of old who defended the defenseless and weak or his present role as an apologist of Mrs. Arroyo?

And speaking about Pimentel, how would he like to be remembered? As that strong-willed mayor of a town in faraway Mindanao or that senator who defended Senator Manny Villar against attacks by another colleague?

Lastly, how does FVR want to be remembered? As the general who jumped for joy after seeing his cousin leave office or the former head of state who nearly brought back the old glory of the Motherland? Or that ex-president who enjoys the tag as the most travelled one or a former head of state who stood his ground against forces critical of Mrs. Arroyo and even condoned the sins of this administration?

These men are, as they say, in their last days on earth. Will people be sad or happy? Will people curse them for promising much yet delivering so little? Or, will the People mourn their passing?

For Filipinos, Legacy is such a brutal word. Since the Legacy scandal broke out, Filipinos now see this word in a very bad light. What are the legacies of our present leaders? Are their legacies like those broken promises of Celso de los Angeles? It seems like it.